ilomilo plus
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| ilomilo plus

LittleBigPlanet's cloth shop odds and sods look inspired a few imitators when it was first released, its mix of cuddly characters and twee noises striking a chord somewhere in even the darkest hearts.

ilomilo was one such post-Sackboy creation, and you can now play an enhanced version on your Windows 8 or RT tablet.

The game tells the story of Ilo and Milo, two cute creatures who like to meet everyday in the park. Unfortunately, that park is redesigned every day, so they need to find new routes to their rendezvous. And that's where you come in.

Park problems

What follows is a series of puzzles that require you to lead the two friends back together. Things start off simple - you'll need to lead Ilo to a gap, then have Milo place a block so his friend can get across - but after a while you're collecting extending blocks, fooling inquisitive moles, and using pads to warp gravity.

You switch between characters with a tap of a button, and control each one using a series of taps. It's not the most intuitive command system, and you'll often find yourself stumbling around trying to get Ilo or Milo to stop in the right place.

The camera control isn't much better, requiring swipes that sometimes don't register, and other times leave you staring at the back of a block rather than what you were hoping to spy.

It's a good job that the game doesn't really rely on precision, or the controls would entirely ruin the experience. As it is, they add a sprinkling of frustration to what is, for the most part, an incredibly enjoyable game.

Flawed but fun

The difficulty curve is pitched just right, with each level adding a little more challenge, and the sights you see as you traverse the gorgeous world are almost enough on their own to keep you pushing forwards.

It's clear from the start that ilomilo plus is a game that was built for a physical joypad, but despite the clumsy controls you'll still find yourself smiling every time you finish a level and manage to reunite the two friends.

This isn't the definitive version of the game by any stretch of the imagination, but it still manages to capture some of the magic that made the original so special.

Throw in a good chunk of new content and a co-operative mode, and you're left with a solid slab of occasionally frustrating entertainment.

ilomilo plus

ilomilo is hampered by its control system, but if you can get past the frustration, you'll find a warm and welcoming game beyond
Score
Harry Slater
Harry Slater
Harry used to be really good at Snake on the Nokia 5110. Apparently though, digital snake wrangling isn't a proper job, so now he writes words about games instead.